Want to get off the grid but think it’s just too expensive? UCB's Dr. Jeff Grossman explains how nanotechnology may be used to make solar panels cheaper. We’ll also hear from philosopher Patrick Lin of the Nanoethics Group about ethical dilemmas that crop up when we try to improve our lives through nanotechnology.

Dr. Jim Tour, a chemist at Rice University, builds the world’s smallest vehicles. He calls them “nanocars,” and he thinks these tiny vehicles might lead to nano-sized factories. We’ll also hear from University of Florida graduate student Diane Hickey, who will tell us some of the interesting reactions she’s run into when explaining nanotechnology.

PETER WHITEHEAD is an instrument builder, performer, and composer. His singular instruments, often based on folk instruments from around the world, feature unusual found materials.
Among his many instruments are the Heart Banjo, made from a baking tin; the Lawn Lyre, made from an old lawnmower and a metal oil pan; and the Spoonharp, made from a five-gallon metal drum, a eucalyptus branch, and kitchen spoons.
Originally from England, Whitehead is now based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Founding member of the Mobius Operandi performance group, he also performs regularly with Closer To Carbon, an improvisational trio.

Join us as we speak with IBM Fellow Dr. Don Eigler, who first used a scanning tunneling microscope to demonstrate the ability to build structures at the atomic level by spelling “I-B-M” with individual atoms. Also, meet Tom Rockwell, Director of Public Exhibition at the Exploratorium, who describes, in an audio essay, how he imagines the land of the very small.

This full-length podcast gives you the full flavor of our Summer Institute. Our staff will tell you about our special month-long Institute, which offers a rich mix of hands-on activities based on Exploratorium exhibits, in-depth content discussions, classroom materials and activities, and machine shop experience. In this podcast, teacher participants tell you what they think about the Summer Institute and how it affected them.

Webcasts made possible through
the generosity of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, The Jim Clark
Endowment for Internet Education, the McBean Family Foundation,.and the Corporation for Educational Networks Initiatives in California (CENIC).